'Twas turning out to be a good start of a hellish day. The
tractor blew up, the Prototype developed a fault in the engine
block, Mike managed to shoot himself in the foot, and Everyone
woke up late.

En route to school, The agents round the same corner Mike had
to fight the bullies yesterday, and true to his luck, the were
there again, and Serena was flat on her rear, whith one of them
hovering over her with a butterfly knife. Eric hastily clears his
throat, drawing their attention in his direction.

"Don't tell me I have to ram another one of ya through
the wall," Mike says, and draws the hammer back on a new .45.
They don't even try for the 20 agents. They just run dead out in
another direction. "Man, we are gonna be late!" Mike
exclaims after checking his watch. Eric offers Serena a hand, and
the rat race for the door ensues anew. They manage to arrive one
minute before the bell. The office staff moans when they see all
twenty agents walking in. They quickly disperse into the crowds,
and all make it to class on time, including Serena. But class is
not to be, as their pagers go off at the same time. As one, they
put on their headset/visor system and call in to Eric for orders,
who is doing the work by his twin laptops which he is typing on
incredibly fast in science class.

"Eh, boss. What's goin' on? I got paged out of Gym!"

"I'm checking now, Em. Standby." He types another
sequence on his computer, and reactivates his microphone, "Rook
from Lead Crow Commander, come in. Rook from Lead Crow, base
respond."

"Sir, I've found something Mad-whack. Long 266, Lat 0. I've
NO clue what it is, sir. It looks like a grey dome in the middle
of the tundra. Sat's just picked it up a few minutes ago.
Recommend recall all units for investigation."

"Acknowledged. Lead Crow, out." He enters another
string of commands into the right Laptop, and turns on his
headset again, "Units FG Lead Crow, come in. We have been
recalled to do some Ice-hiking to the top of the world. APC is
already en route. Rendzevous is in the west parking lot. Out."
Eric starts packing up hurriedly, and is out the door before
anyone could ask what was going on. All are assembled when the 8-wheeled
APC arrives for them, and Luna mnages to hitch a ride on the roof
of the laser turret. Once they arrive at the Mansion, under heavy
military escort, They board a chopper bound for the North pole.

"Well, a tradeoff for freezing our butts off is we get to
see Santa."

"You still believe in him, Emily?" Mike says, the
engines beginning to start.

"He exists. Our flight plan takes us right across his
base." Eric shouts over the engines.

They load onto the chopper, and take off under escort of
Apache gunships. The trip lasts through about 15 multiplayer
MechCommander matches, utilizing a Duffel-bag server system. Em
takes a few photos of Santa's pad, and they arrive at the dome
unmolested.

"CHECK YOUR GEAR!" Eric barks at the heavily laden
soldiers. They repel down 30 feet to the tundra, near the dome.
The chopper leaves, to await further orders from Eric.

"It looks like a replica of our power, sir."

"'tis not. The powerbase is elemental, not force/divine.
A concordance of the worst conflicting powers. I wonder who got
trapped in here? Regardless, they will be of immense help-OH NO!
The seventh shadow is in jeoporady! MOVE!"

"SIR!" they respond, and teleport/jump out of here,
bound for the city.

In the city, Greg wanders aimlessly, hoping to elude the
clutches of the Negaforce long enough to allow the Multimages
ample time to ready for the defense of this planet.

"Greg?"

"Yes"

"Agent Michaels, CIA Div. 404. You are needed at
Headquarters for questioning. This way, please."

"You don't have to pull this routine on me. I know who
you are, Baron."

{Ahh, I forgot. You are a psychic. Please, this way. They
approach.}

"They will win this round, you know."

{We know, but we hope we can delay them long enough to
position the rest of our forces. Turn left.}

They turn left, and are met by a star of Multimage Bladesmen
awaiting to escort him away. Greg begins to phaze out, and is
almost captured by the Negaverse, but are thwarted when Mike
shoves him into a portal. The warriors prepare for a fight with
the traitorous Zoisite.

Eric prepares for a long spell casting by first examining the
dome. It is not our power, he concludes, but part of it is very
famialiar. Definitely a mix of Elemental power, combined with the
legendary Talismans, and a power source Eric didn't know. He
transforms into his armor, nearly inpenetrable plate armor, and
climbs the dome. Once upon the top, he draws his blade, and
begins casting a really old spell through it, lasting a good
three hours. During that time, Eric noticed a gate opening, and
out steps...Malachite? He couldn't stop now. He had to complete
the casting, or be consumed by the spell. The last three words he
shouts to invoke the magic: *DEATH RESURRECTION REBORN!* and he
thrusts his blade coreward, cracking the dome into small shards.
At the same time, he is struck in the back by two energy
boomerangs, and falls to the snow. Thinking his task complete,
Malachite returns to the negaverse, not noticing the dome
cracking.

Aware he's not dead, only slightly injured (two small gashes
in his back armor plate), and being scrutinized, he disappears.
Twenty feet farther east, he reappears, ready for hand-to-hand
combat, adorned by multiple sets of weapons: two 6' sabres
resting vertically across his shoulder plates, a Bow, folded, in
the center of his back, two small longswords, in an inverted
"X" pattern across midback, and two horizontal knives
across his lower back, concealing the cuts in his armor. "which
one of you ingrates struck me in the back?" he didn't try to
disguise the fury in his voice.

"I don't know who you are, mister, but if you are looking
for a fight, you've found one."

"Mmm...11 to 1. Dreadful me. I was hoping for at least a
small challenge..."

*VENUS LOVE CHAIN SURROUND!* the attack is deflected
completely by his blades, which he seemed to wield faster than
light. *JUPITER THUNDERCRASH SOUND!*, and he retorts with a *Bolt
3*, knocking Jupiter, Mercury, and Star Healer down. Eric didn't
get a chance to stop from their continual assault. They were
doing their best to defeat an unknown adversary, using every
attck they knew, and failing. Nothing seemed able to either hit
him or pierce his armor. One by one, they fell to his blades,
untill Saturn stepped into the fray, wielding the Silence Glaive.
Caught unaware, The unscathed armored warrior was struck in the
back by this weapon, but she had not the strength to penetrate
very far past the thick armor. Eric screams in anguish, and he
jabs his sabre into the ground to maintain his balance. When she
draws the blade out, Eric spins on one foot, catches the blade of
his sword in the blade of the polearm, and strikes the handle in
the middle, dislodging it and leaving her helpless. he releases
his left sabre, draws forth a knife, and stops his swing just
short of her throat. Almost instantly, he is struck from the side
by a yellow ball, creating a miniture quake inside Eric, and
flings him several yards right and away from Saturn. They realize
he is badly wounded, for he does not get up after the fall, and
the path he flew stained the ground crimson. As a followup,
Uranus draws the Space Sword, a potent arm capabile of
eliminating foes in a single stroke, and advances. Halfway there,
they hear him shout, but not through their ears, {'TWILL NOT LOSE!!!}
and he springs from his prone position to land a few yards away
from Uranus. He draws his other knife, which he whips at the mob,
striking Venus in the shoulder. She screams, and collapses to the
ground, in considerable pain. Uranus rushes, dead out furious for
that last blow. He draws the slim longswords, and charges at her.
Another gash in his armor is evident, across the upper arm, but
his stained blades betray the fact that she did not escape
unscathed. She collapses to the tundra out of shock from the
slices across leg and chest. Eric vaults backward, narrowly
missing a fireball, and shouts *STAR SWORD SCREAM!* the long
blades summon forth a column of pure elictricty, and he direct
this into their midst. They escape, but scatter farther away from
the Glaive. He lands here, and picks up the two weapons. He
notices the way the blade of the polearm cuts through rock-hard
ice as he jabs it groundward to remain standing. Saturn notices
the far away look in his eyes from pain. He gets struck in the
back by another energy bolt from Jupiter, this time entering the
wound created by Saturn's weapon. He shreiks in pain from the
blow, and collapses.

Pluto, who avoided him because her dead scream did not affect
him, noticed the crystal sword stuck in the ground where the dome
was. She draws it forth, and realizes who's it is. "You! I
know you! You were a frequent at the Gates, correct?"

"Yes, I was."

*Moon Sceptre-

"Stop! He's on our side!"

"WHAT???" was the response of all of the scouts,
some who had just got up, and Sailor Moon, a late arrival.

"He's the Emperor of Multimages."

"Impossible," was Luna's response, "what he has
in his hand wouldn't-"

"She's right. I am. And have ye forgotten all I have
taught you, Luna? A vorpal weapon will cleave ANYTHING, including
unaware Multimages."

Behind him opens another gate, this time revealing, once again,
Malachite. "So, you have served the Negaverse well, Emperor.
makes my job easier."

"I have not consciously served Queen Metalia in my life,
and i intend to keep it that way, shitscum." Malachite
summons fore his energy boomerangs, and to this Eric reacts.
"So, it was YOU who tricked me into attacking them! You will
pay for that deception, maggot." He raises the polearm.
Malachite slings the energy bolts, and the first one is blocked,
but the second one passes him, headed for...Sailor Moon? Eric
teleports midair in front of it's flight path, but is unable to
block it with his shield, and it nails him in the chest. he lands,
and almost collapses, using the blunt end of the Silence Glaive
to maintain balance. He screams defiance, and rushes at him,
polearm ready to run Malachite through. Eric's opponent throws
the boomerangs again, and both manage to hit, but draws no
reaction from him. At the same time Malachite retrieves his
boomerangs, Eric strikes him with the Glaive, and with enough
force to send it right through his foe about 3 feet. Eric draws
the weapon forth, spinning it back into a thrusting position to
strike again if necessary, and Malachite collapses to the ground,
holding his gut where the blade pierced. He says not one thing
before dying. Eric, his foe vanquished, collapses to the ground
with an uncharasteric thud and clanging of his armor plates.
Pluto runs to his side, fearing that had killed him.

"Eric! Wake up!"

"I'm not dead yet, Katy, and I intend to keep on living
for now." he gets to his feet, and the Sailors jump backward,
wondering what it would take to stop him permanently. Eric picks
up on this, and announces that it would take c. 10 times more
than what they had COMBINED.

"Now. I can tell that you hate this place as much as I.
This gate," he reveals a gate in the middle of the tundra,
"will take you back to the outskirts of the city, near the
"abandoned" mansion."

"How do we know this isn't a trick?" Mars would not
give an inch, after getting cleaved several time by him.

"You don't. Just remember, your at Lat 0 degrees; the
nearest airport is 1200 miles away. I doubt even as Sailor Scouts
you'd survive to there."

"Ladies first," Eric said. They all head for the
gate, but Eric stops Saturn before she enters. "I believe
this is yours, M'lady," and he hands her the Silence Glaive,
which he had been cleaning. She accepts it, and steps through.
Eric closes another warphole before exiting to the mansion.

Back in the city, The gate opens to just outside the mansion,
and the scouts are greeted by 5 assault rifle armed soldiers,
expecting this to be a Negaverse trick. When Eric steps through,
the soldiers continue on what they were doing. One of the
soldiers steps up to Eric, and they get into a conversation. It
ends quickly, and He turns to the Sailors, who are standing
around, watching the industries of professional soldiers making
ready for war.

"Okay. Into town, 'tis 3 miles. Nearest bus terminal is
on 223rd. You can grab a ride from there, or one of my agents can
drop you off. Your choice."

"Ehhh...We'll walk." Was Venus's response.

"Good luck." Eric turns away, and readies to mow
"the back 40". As he walks in to the barn, an Agent
runs out of the Mansion, shouting for the boss. He enters the
barn, and a conversation is audible, including a few profanities.
Eric dashes out first, and activates his headphone comm system.

"All Multimages, the time to defend our charge has
arrived. A large punitive force approaches, and is expected to be
in range to attack the future site of Crystal Tokyo in about 20
minutes. RSP is lance configuration, with at least one Mobile
Arty piece per lance. Repeat, Crystalline Structures en route.
MOVE!!!" All around them, units stopped what they were doing,
and started arming themselves for a fight. Choppers began landing
themselves in the courtyard, and troops carrying the large
cannons Serena saw entered them. F-15 jets were seen taking off
both vertically and horizontally. Strange enough, Eric gives
command authority to a senior Baron who was obviously shaken by
his leader's faith in 'lowly' him.

"And you aren't to help them?" Was Neptune's
question as he passes her.

"I will, but in another medium. I recommend you leave
here. Thing's may get a little dicey around here, especially when
we're conducting wars. Who knows, ye may get drafted into a few,
shall we say, unpleasent tasks. I've to go now, while they,"
and he points skyward, "Posture futiley. See ya." He
disappears into thin air, and reappears inside the old base that
was the Negaverse.

Inside the city, panic was running rampant. People were
running uncontrollably from the large floating Crystals. Another
sound was heard over the mass exodus: the sounds of chopper
blades and jet engines. The units of the 12886th MM TechStrikers
had arrived to protect the planet's future. As the choppers start
offloading the Arty batteries, the F-15XSJs begin assaulting the
floating crystalline structures. Attack choppers add to the
defense, using Energy weapons and Maverick missiles to wipe them
from the skies. If just one of those things land, we're screwed.
The arty batteries open fire on the targets with Force rounds,
causing a lot of internal damage. Crystal invasion vehicles
disintegrate all over, being destroyed by the most powerful
practical weapons ever devised.

One of them emits some form of a beam from the bottom spyre,
destroying part of a scyscraper that housed an artillery battery
lance. The Baron there manages to hook his Fauch-de-Gurreire into
the side of the building, slowing his fall to a leisurely pace,
but the Knight and two Elites didn't get so lucky. They fall to
the ground, their armors betraying a lot of physical damage, as
well as damage from the fall. The Baron arrives at ground floor,
and checks them.

"Dead. The Emperor ain't gonna like this."

"In pace Raisquit." is what another person said in
the crowd.

"Agreed. Are you active Military?" Mike says to the
person who said that.

"Yes, Sir! S/Sgt. US Army, 63rd Armored."

"Come with me, please." Mike hoists the cannon,
which wasn't damaged by the fall, and they both proceed up the
stairs to the top floor. On top, the ammo cache remained intact,
but that giant Crystal had landed. Mike loads a shell.

"Brace yourself. These shells're twice the size and power
of a "Smoothie 2" shell." Mile fires the weapon,
and the crystal is blown to tinkling shards.

"All units, watch yourselves. These things have the
equivalent of a LgLas with short range."

The Crystals were being well destroyed, but not at a fast
enough rate. All over the city, light bursts from their weapon
were visible. Mike drops his head for a second, and then raises
it up, an expression of fear, hatred, and deep anger is on his
face. He hoists the cannon on his shoulder, calls for a chopper,
and loads on. The soldier stays with him, and the chopper takes
off. They reach an altitude, Mike sets it into 'link fire' mode,
straps a belt into it, and opens fire. The repeater mechanism on
the cannon keeps the shells flying, and the remaints of these
evil crystals are wiped from the skies. The units begin their
weary track home, by ground because the choppers had been
destroyed. Cheering was heard throughout the entire town, and the
warriors, for the most part, were happy at their welcome from
their return from the shadows, even if the celebration was
eclipsed by the losses of 35% of the 12886th. The Multimages
rreturned to the base, and continued preparations for the final
battle, now only a few days off.

Eric, now standing in what was the old Negaverse, and admiring
the workmanship in the sickly droll Palace that was once his
sister's base. Eric Doesn't even bother to knock. He just barges
in, expecting to be in the middle of a nasty crowd. The Palace
was...EMPTY??? She'd've moved her base from Eric's direct
observation. Too bad she didn't know who was hers and who was a
spy. The whole palace was...empty. The throne and dais was dusty,
the pavillion was untreaded, his footsteps kicked up contrails of
dust, and the Spyre that was once Queen Metalia's restingplace
was shattered and...empty. Too bad, I'd've loved to wipe the
whole shmear of 'em in a single shot. But, then again, If she
gated direct to her new base...Nope, the gates present are the
usual, plus a gate to New Avalon 6. Oh well. But, what's this? He
notices a portal to an Extra-dimensional space, right in the
middle of the lower pavillion, 25 yards from the Queen's dais. A
storage space? Eric unzips the portal, sword ready to strike an
unknown creature, but all that falls out is a large...CRYSTAL?
And Jaedite within? hmmm...so this was the fate of the traitor L5
Baron. I wonder if he'd be willing to serve me again. No guts, no
Glory. Eric wields his sword, and splits the Clear crystal apart
in half. Jed falls to the ground, still screaming his would-be
mortal scream. He looks up to see the foot plates of Eric's armor,
and the tip of the blade resting upon the marble ground.

"Emperor Eric? Why did you save me?"

"Because 500 years of training that can be salvaged doesn't
look good when it goes down the tube."

"Because, Jaedite, you have more combat experience than
half of my combat staff, and your insight into the mind of my
sister is invaluable. A lot of time has passed since you were
Chrono-frozen. She used you, and when you lost, she tried offing
you. She also offed Zoisite, Malachite was eliminated by Sailor
Moon, and Nephlyte was wasted by Zoy. I'm giving you a chance to
serve me again, because Queen Metalia's ambition will destroy
this universe. You still possess the skills that once were your
trademark. Wouldst ye be willing to serve me again?"

"Why not? I've nothing to lose but my life...Again."

"You know where to report. I've a dimension to wipe. See
ya."

"Yes, SIR!" Jaedite disappears, knowing his life now
has purpose: to help end the mad reign of Queen Beryll.

Eric begins the cant of destruction: it uses his grasp of
Force to infuse and then Nova a star, to destroy an entire
dimension. He finds a nice White Dwarf, Nullifies the fusion
reaction inside, infuses it with a large amount of Force, and
implants a Thermonuclear warhead inside the cooled star. He falls
back to watch the destruction of the star, and the chain reaction
of all stars deestroying themselves and their satellites,
creatinmg a void and a lot of black holes. Eric returns to base
on Earth.

After having a fun time playing AAA, Mike wanted desperately
to grab a drink. Something in 90-proof would do him well. But he
didn't get a shot to. New recruits were here, and he was needed
to train them. Amongst the new recruits, he noticed, was the S/sgt
that helped him in the city. Mike nods to him when he enters.
There were also two ladies in there, whom he slightly recognized,
but not knowing from where.

"All right, ladies. You know why you are here. You have
the capacity to be one of the Elite, the best of the best. You
have the capacity to be a Multimage. Most of ye have been through
basic trainings of some sort. Some have not, buit will do good
elsewhere. Before I go on, I'd like to tell you about your
choices: 4 exist: 1, you leave now, if you canNOT take it. 2: you
can join the ranks of the bladesmen. These are the frontline
soldiers that take and inflict the worst of hurts. 3: Join the
Tech units. these are the units that deal with futurteTech:
firearms, planes, battlemechs, and the like. 4: you can become
one of the most powerful ranks: The Magewarriors. basically put,
these are the people that user wizardry, spells, whichcraft,
necromancing, and other techniques to do the impossible and then
some. 'Tis your choice, and all have equal promotion rites into
the ranks of the Knights and Barons. You have heard the legends
about the ranks of the Multimage, so I don't have to repeat that.
oh, and one other thing: barrack rumor is a nasty thing. If you
hear something and it doesn't sound right, report it and I'll see
to it that it is cured/augmented." Eric steps in, followed
by Jaedite. Mike is instantly on his feet, and salutes them both.
"Boss! Back so soon? I thought-"

"Nah. Didn't take that long. New recruits?"

"Yep. Raw lot, but some of the best i've seen in a while.
large capacities."

"Continue then," Eric and Jaedite grab seats in the
back row, and Mike continues on. After he finishes his opening
speech, he takes them out to the yard where they begin basic
training 102. Eric and Jed join in on the 'fun': assault rifle
training, Swordmanship, Basic wizardry 101. It became evident
that one of the girls, by the name Tiffany, was not very
physically apt. Eric pulls her aside.

"Now, why did you sign on for this when you can barely
manage an assault rifle?"

"Because I know I can do this, and I already possess a
powerful magic talent."

"What is that?"

"This," And she touches a withering tree and it
heals itself quickly back to normal health. Eric noticed the mark
patterns on her slight hand.

"You wield a glaive, don't you?"

"What?"

"I can tell. The stretch marks on your left hand suggest
a polearm, and you almost mirrior the wielder of the Silence
Glaive." He notices the shocked expression on her face,
"do not worry, madame. This puts you ahead of them,"
And he jerks his thumb in the recruit's direction. "Well
ahead of them. You fought well, and none have managed to cause
that much damage to me in many a fight, save my last beer-bottle-brawl.
I shall instruct you personally in proper usage of that weapon,
and how to draw forth it's full vorpal potential. That is, unless
ye wants to continue with them."

"NO!" She shouts, and it catches the attention of
the boyish Trisha, who goes to see what is going on.

"And I am to presume you are another? Oh, yes, you are
the one who wields the AE weapon, the Space Sword. Am I correct?"

"Maybe..."

"Give it up, Uranus. We're on the same team. Now, are
there anymore of you in the newbies?"

"No." is Saturn's droll response.

"I'll tell you now, you already have the same manifested
power as a L6 Baron, the experience of many of my Elite, and the
defense of a Regular. I can help you as far as possible to get
better, but you will have to put forth a large effort. 'twill not
be a cakewalk. Trisha, your sphere of influence is that of the
ground. Therefore, I can give you training in Magics dealing with
the manipulation of ground: earthquakes, sands, and the like. You
also have some control over space, which means you can control
wizardry dealing with Meteors, Nuclear physics, Quantum theorum,
and others. Saturn, your greatest sphere of influence is upon
healing. There is many magics whithin, and you will be able to
utilize most without draining yourself dangerously. Both of you
will be trained to better use those weapons you posess, allowing
you to defend yourselves better than you could normally. Queen
Beryll wants desperately to destroy this dimension, so all others
will be destroyed. But if she does so, she merely increases the
power of my empire. She must not be allowed to win. I, personally,
have my own sets of plans for this dimension. This is one of
those dimensions that was unified before my Empire swept down
upon it, so I had no trouble finding a stable beginning without
garrisoning. An easy way to reference what this dimension would
be like would be the harmony reached about the same time as the
peak of the Silver Millenium."

"YOU can do that?" Trisha was shocked: she had seen
him as the cruel warleader of a large army.

"I have on many a world, and enjoyed it. Peace is, well,
the easiest way to get what you want. But, a few soldiers can
always be thrown in for good measure. Depends on how you look at
it."

"Whaddya know about the Silver Millenium?" Tiff wasn't
feeling good: If he knew about it, who else would?

"'twas the Guard Captain for the Palace, when the
Negaforces attacked. Queen Serenity didn't want a large garrison
around her castle, but I managed to get 2500 troops in there and
in secret bases. Most of those bases still exist to date,
including a Chrono-Nuke base on the far side of the moon. My
guard managed a brave fight, but they were wiped by the
invincible Shadow, as was the Scouts. I was off-planet conducting
business with the Eridani when they hit. The first impression
that I got of the problem was when the Crystal Imperium Silver
was used upon the Shadow. I hurried home, but it was all too late.
I arrived home in time to see the destruction they caused."
They could almost hear the desperation in his voice. "Shall
we go now? Or would you like to return to Basic Magic 101?"

"A Bastard sword. A.K.A. Hand-and-a-half sword. can be
used with one or two hands." They go out of sight of the
recruits on the far side of the mansion. "Now, M'ladies,
draw your weapons."

"We have to be in our other forms to use them."
Trisha said.

"Why? Any good Magical relic can be called upon to do
disservice in/out of alternate form," and he holds his hand
out, producing the Crystal Blade. They both gasp in shock. "Well,
what are ye waiting for?" They both draw forth their weapons,
and ready to use them. "Now, there are a few principals to
using any weapon. First: If you draw it, be prepared to use it.
You NEVER draw a weapon if you aren't to use it. It invites
trouble." They nod. "Second: Positioning. Polearms are
held perpendicular to your front and at an angle, to parry blows.
Swords are held at an angle in front of you, also to block."
And he demonstrates this with his weapon. They catch on quickly.
"Now, Third: Use. There are many ways to use such a weapon,
and the easiest way to use a polearm is to impale your foe. You
saw what that thing did to me..."

"Yep."

"There are other ways to kill with these." He
brandishes a Glaive, ready to use it. "Slicing with these
such weapons is always fun. Great for cutting bologna when you
have to feed this crew," and he jerks his thumb in the
Mansion's direction. "To do so, find a position where you
have a lot of leverage, say, a 3/4ths hold with spread grip, and
swing." He demonstrates with a concrete block, and cleaves
it in half. "Now you try." Tiffany doesn't even scratch
it. "Okay, try this. Use the Glaive as you would a pike. Ram
it through the item. Trish, you try as well. It will be necessary
for all of you to get proficient with all weapons." He hands
her the glaive he was holding. They try, and Trish cuts through
two bricks. Tiffany barely manages to get the point through 2"
of material. "Are you naturally weak, or is this an act?"

"I'm naturally weak, sir. It must be a tradeoff to my
ability to heal people."

Eric sends them home after dark, with several reams of papers
apiece. Trisha had orders to learn the Enhancement spells for
"quake" Mlev 1-5, and Tiffany had orders to try to 'toughen
up', as no warrior could win a war in her state. She was also to
learn a few curative spells, to augment what Eric called the
ability to "lay on hands" that she had mastered. Eric
had a few drinks of Ale with the crews of the Quads, and was
wasted before he got to his bed.